Things Are Different
by Shannar0
Summary: Haruno Sakura came to the conclusion that there were multiple reasons why she should complete her paperwork in his hospital room. SasuSaku. Oneshot.


A/N: Well... To say I've been gone for a while would be an understatement. I'm still attempting to muster up my courage to begin a multi-chap fic but I still feel like I have quite a ways to go.

I apologize in advanced for improper grammar or spelling. I wanted to quickly finish and upload this before I changed my mind. Please tell me what you think and what I can do to improve.

**Disclaimer: If I owned Naruto it would be called Sakura. Obvi.**

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Glancing at branches dancing to the spring songs of happily chirping birds, Haruno Sakura came to the conclusion that there were multiple reasons why she should complete her paperwork in his hospital room.

For one, it was always quiet. No member of the hospital staff would dare disturb the patient inside. She chuckled as she looked to the door, imagining temps and nurses tip-toeing their way past the door as to not disrupt the great Uchiha Sasuke.

Secondly, she wanted to keep him company. He spent most of his days waiting in this hospital room, long after recovery, waiting for leadership to be restored to the village. With the council disbanded and talk of a new Hokage, things were still a bit disorganized in the Hidden Leaf. Of course, it was no secret that her former teammate never minded and sometimes even longed for solitude. Even so, Sakura told herself that he'd been alone long enough. She'd once promised to be by his side. She'd give him that much.

Her pen hesitated as jade orbs fell from her papers to her lap as she thought of all the promises she'd sworn and the lies she told to the two people she loved the most. Naruto was immediately forgiving of course. All she had to do to make up for it was take him for ramen once a week. But Sasuke… His existence was defined by holding a grudge. He wouldn't trust her because, no matter what her reasons were, she had attempted to end his life. Of course she could say the same for him, but she wouldn't. That day she swore to put her trust in the both of them.

She was once the reasoning that ended their quarrels. What was her place now?

The medic clicked her pen rapidly as the silence become too loud. She didn't mind it much in her genin days, but this silence was filled with something else.

Before she could reflect on it too much a burst of wind blew her papers to the ground. She slammed the window shut and immediately turned and after a sad attempt to retrieve her files, she shoved them into her messenger bag with an exasperated sigh, deciding that the universe was letting her know she was done for the day.

Feeling the need to stretch she swiveled away for the desk, reaching her arms to the ceiling. Relishing in the feeling of relieving her tense muscles she let out a less than lady-like yawn. Mid-roar, Sakura opened her watering eyes to find another pair staring back at her.

Shit. She'd forgotten she wasn't alone.

Had she really been so immersed in paperwork and her own wild imagination that she'd forgotten she was seated next to his hospital bead? Heat flared in her cheeks and she reached into her bag, begging for any kind of distraction. Papers. Pens, Stethoscope. Syringes. Kunai. Medicine bottles. Petite fingers curled around a cool, smooth surface. Immediately recognizing the object she let out a scoff.

An apple. Comical.

She kept her attention on the rosy fruit placed in her palm, attempting a self-distraction from the gaze on her heavy with something she couldn't place. She turned back to her bag to retrieve a kunai.

She allowed her mind to bring her back in time, in a similar setting. As always in her younger years, she was devotedly at Sasuke's side, peeling an apple much like the one she currently held. An image of a bowl shattered against the wall and sliced apple scattered across the ground flashed in her mind. She brought her fingers to the bridge of her nose, pinching hard, to attempt to rid the image from her head.

To further distract herself, she brought her kunai to the soft flesh of the apple. She was halfway through peeling when she bundled up all the courage she could muster into her gaze and looked into the Uchiha's eyes, hoping she didn't look as out of place as she felt.

To anyone else, Sasuke's face was the unforgiving mask of disinterest. But, Sakura being Sakura, could make out a slight crack. In his eyes lay speculation, like he was awaiting something.

Did he expect her to fawn? To cry? The thought temporarily infuriated her.

She watched as dark irises' slipped from her face to her hands. Dark eyebrows slid up, hiding behind his bangs.

Was he… amused?

She glanced down, curious as to what caught his attention. Apparently during her mini-fit her kunai had ebbed its way into the center of the apple. Sigh. How embarrassing.

Trying to save face, she cut it in half. Placing half of the apple on the table and the other in her hand, she began to carve away at the skin.

"You look like you're expecting something." Did she just say that? When had she decided she was going to speak? Did the sentence sound okay? Did she spit at all? Her mind raced through a million questions all the while mulling over what she said, making sue that is was appropriately formed and pronounced.

She heard the sheet ruffle and a creak was the weight on the bed shifted. Before she knew it the sharingan wielder was sitting on the edge of the bed, directly in front of her.

She needed to stop being so easily distracted by her thoughts.

"Aa."

Of course. What else would she expect? Her mannerisms may have changed, though admittedly very slightly, but his obviously had not.

So what now? Through her years of pining after Sasuke, she'd never formed the correct response to his grunts. Maybe she could grunt back. That's how gorillas communicated. No, he might see it as a threat. Perhaps he'll stand up, roar, and start beating his chest-

"I do not blame you for what you did. I was… attempting to avenge the people I loved… and you were attempting to save the people you love. " He held her eyes firmly. He was serious.

"Oh! U-um..." Does she say thank you? Is that sincere enough? Maybe he'd appreciate if she didn't say anything at all. That's usually the best response to Sasuke. Silence.

"Only an idiot would feel guilty about something so stupid."

Well, that didn't last long. She chuckled as she looked back to her handiwork. She'd hardly been paying attention to the apple while she was cutting away, the result of which was the mangled mess currently lying on her lap. She scooped up the mess and placed it next to the untouched halve.

She looked back to Sasuke just in time to see him raise his eyebrows for the second time that day, this time at the fruit sitting next to his bedside. He looked back at her as to say "Apples? Considering our past?"

She let herself give him a shrug and soft smile. She allowed herself to acknowledge the butterflies in her stomach. He remembered.

She watched his hand travel to the small table, pluck a chunk from the pile, and pop it into his mouth. The sound of his chewing filled the room for a short moment.

Was he attempting to make up for their previous apple encounter? She doubted he cared about such a thing, but what he said next made her wonder.

"Now… now things are different."

Hm. It seemed they were indeed.

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A/N: I tried to make them as canon as possible ;_;

If you have any prompts, write them in your review or send me a PM. Thanks in advanced guys!

- S


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